More absentee landlord properties involved in the gun violence

Last night I reported on the gun violence that is escalating near 5th and Mulberry Streets.  State Police, the Sheriff's CSI unit and Millville Police were all on the scene for the better part of the night, and Mulberry Street was block with crime scene tape from 5th Street to midway down the block.

The stray lead hit some of the residences in the area, although to my knowledge nobody was hit. YET.

There are three residential properties involved in an ongoing drug war over turf. I recently listed the name of the slumlord that owns 501 N. 5th Street, an anonymous owner from Lakewood NJ who enjoys their own quiet neighborhood as they profit from blight and urban decay. Hey, as long as they get that government section-8 check, what do they care?

Two other properties are also involved in this battle. 501-503 Mulberry Street, owned by Kenneth Williams, PO Box 1568, Millville, NJ 08332.  The tenants of this property are only peripherally involved in the violence, but neighbors say confidentially that they have trashed the entire inside of the house to the point that it is not fit for occupancy.

The real troublemaker in the recent slate of gun violence is 505 Mulberry Street, another rental owned by  Kevin Ragsdale, 426 N 6th St., Millville, NJ 08332.

The daily shooting spree began about a week ago, and has resulted in incidents every single night - allowing residents a reprieve only for New Years Eve night. So far there are no casualties other than the property values of home owners that live in houses that have been rendered almost valueless due to the inability of the City of Millville to put a stop to the violence.

City Commissioner Dave Vanaman insists that the citizens should not be allowed to defend themselves, and claims that it is the duty of the police department to protect the law-abiding citizens that are stuck in the war zone. But to date, he has been mum, refusing to comment to the media or public.

I know renters that are working families, scared for their children because the City of Millville has failed to take corrective action and put a stop to this gangland dispute.

First drive-by of the New Year

5th and Mulberry, 9PM New year's Day and we have our first drive-by shooting of the New Year. I want to know what the hell our director of public safety is planning to do about this, is he waiting for an innocent bystander to be shot?

301 N 5th St LLC - SLUMLORDS

Fifth and Mulberry Streets have become a hotbed of nuisance activity. Residents lives are in danger from stray bullets as gunfire is a regular, nightly occurrence in this area. It is only a matter of time before an innocent bystander is hit.

The Daily Journal reports that the source of some if this activity is 301 N 5th Street.

A street brawl and gunfire in a Center City neighborhood Friday morning led to the arrests of five men on unrelated charges.
It was the third time in three days police were called to the area of North 5th and Mulberry streets for reports of shots fired.
Bystanders to Friday’s fight directed officers to an apartment house at 301 North 5th Street to find some of the people involved in the incident, police said.

This property is a rat's nest of nuisance activity. The building is an eyesore, but unfortunate that is not a crime.  But it is indicative of the contempt the owners hold of Millville residents and taxpayers. The owners are too cowardly to list the property under their own names, but hide behind an LLC. Their LLC is listed as the highly imaginative

501 N FIFTH ST, LLC. 

133 Stratford Place

Lakewood, NJ 08701.

They relax in their quaint neighborhoods, collecting easy money while our neighborhoods turn into ghettos. I did a search on 133 Stratford Place, and discovered that it is owned by Avrohom and Judith Goldberg. Apparently this property consists of condominiums, so it is not clear of the Goldbergs are behind the 501 N Fifth St LLC or not.  I will continue to dig.

5th and Mulberry Criminal Hot Spot

Fifth and Mulberry Streets mark Millville's newest hot spot of criminal activity. While law abiding citizens are denied the right to carry a concealed weapon for self-defense, and Commissioner David Vanaman states that he opposes the right of citizens to defend themselves, guns carried by felons and criminals are a fact of life in Center City.

The same city intersection is now the scene of three shooting incidents in just over 36 hours after a resident called police Friday morning to report a gunshot, leading to five arrests.

Residents standing outside about an hour afterward were either mum or claimed nothing had happened at all. 

It is no wonder that by-standers are keeping mum. Just ask Arnold Bell of the 3rd Ward.

Days after Arnold Bell complained that police are not doing enough to protect him from neighborhood teenagers who are attacking him and trying to burn down his house, city officials either said his protection was someone else’s responsibility, that enough was already being done, or were simply not available.

It was in regard's to Bell's situation, a man who has been harassed and threatened since speaking to authorities about a recent murder, that Vanaman claimed he had no right to defend himself in public,

Bell suggested that he should be allowed to carry a gun to defend himself, but Vanaman disagreed with this personally and said any changes to the law were out of his hands.

“That’s not even in our control. That would be the state’s responsibility. I don’t think it’s gotten anywhere near that state of things though,” he said.

“My personal feelings are, I don’t think there should be a general open carry law.”

Here are the facts - if the State of New Jersey is going to deny citizens the right to self-defense, then it is incumbent that every citizen receive 100% police protection, so that they are completely protected from the predatory criminal element that the court systems deem worthy of being allowed to roam free our streets. Dave Vanaman lives in a safe neighborhood, as do his followers. Of course he is going to claim that citizens do not have the right to protect their property of their lives, he is safe and secure in his house.

Mary Messick heading crime watch efforts

Mary Messick  from Center City Millville is heading the efforts to create a new crime watch.

Messeck is taking the bull-by-the-horns and distributing a newsletter each month that lists upcoming meetings within the city where residents can voice their support against violence and crime.
“It’s a newsletter, plain and simple,” Messeck said. “But it tells the facts.”
Facts like “(in) 2010, 65 percent of Millville’s crime was located in the Center City/3rd Ward area.”
But it’s not worth anything if people refuse to speak up, Messeck said.

 Those interested in joining Millville’s neighborhood crime watch, or supporting Messeck’s initiatives, should contact her at (856) 982-7323, by email at maryhymer@aol.com or on Facebook by searching for “Mary Messeck.”

Millville resident denied the right to defend self and property

With all of this talk in the county recently encouraging residents to "snitch", we have a situation where a resident is willing to talk, and now suffering retribution while law enforcement is ignoring his plight.

A city resident who called police with tips immediately after a teenager was murdered in October said that neighborhood teenagers are terrorizing him, and that the law enforcement agencies that so desperately ask for tips are doing little to stop them. 

This resident even has photographs of the juveniles that are terrorizing, and that allegedly attempted arson. They are roaming free today.

It is no wonder that people are afraid to talk and report criminal activity.

Gunfire at 5th and Mulberry

There were reports of gunfire at 5th and Mulberry Tuesday night, December 20. One person said they counted eight shots, after which the Millville Police descended en-masse on the area. I see nothing in the papers about this as of yet.

Jeff van Drew a friend of Slum Lords

This is worrisome - and I have to wonder who paid Van Drew off? Jeff Van Drew wants to prohibit municipalities from inspecting apartment complexes for safety violations.

New Jersey is about to make its rental units less safe.
That will be the result of a bill approved recently by the state Senate and headed to the Assembly. The bill, sponsored by state Sen. Jeff Van Drew, D-Cape May, Cumberland, would prohibit local municipalities from carrying out routine periodic inspections of apartment buildings.

 If Van Drew had his way, the now demolished Millville Gardens would still be standing, as he defends the slumlord owners.

It was the inspections, along with police calls that led to a victory for Millville residents. But Van Drew wants to spit in your face, and allow other atrocities to go unchallenged - above the law.

Adopt-A-Block Neighborhood Cleanups

Date/Time: Saturday, July 16 from 10:00am-12:00am

Place: St. Paul's Lutheran Church

Corner of 3rd & Mulberry

Millville, NJ
Event: Clean-up of Millville City Blocks

Mark your calendars for the third Saturday of every month!

Saturday, August 20
Saturday, September 17
Saturday, October 15
Saturday, November 19

These clean-ups will be held from 10:00am-12:00pm at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church with food and drinks for everyone who participates following the clean-up.

Good Website

www.crimesolutions.gov a new site began by the deparment of justice. The site has areas where you can research all kinds of crime matters, ranging from prevention techniques, dealing with juveniles etc ... A useful resource!